


Stop Collaborate and Listen

by JaliyahJade



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: ASMR, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ben has a channel called Kylligraphy, Calligraphy, Collaboration, F/M, Han Ships It, Insomnia, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rey and Rose are the Wenches with Wrenches, YouTube, YouTube Conventions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-12 09:17:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20561918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JaliyahJade/pseuds/JaliyahJade
Summary: Rey Sands is not particularly interested in learning the art of Calligraphy.  Why then does she never miss an episode of “Kylligraphy “ by the YouTuber, Kylo Ren?  Because his deep silky voice has her feeling tingles for the first time in her life, lulling her to sleep like a warm bath.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a super short prologue! The first full-length chapter will be up soon.
> 
> Big thanks to my betas TokiDoki and [here4thereylo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/here4thereylo/pseuds/here4thereylo)! First moodboard by me and the second by [fettuccine_alfreylo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fettuccine_alfreylo/pseuds/fettuccine_alfreylo).
> 
>   


It was 2 a.m. and Rey was playing Youtube Roulette again. “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Migrants and Refugees” was too heavy for her sleep-deprived mind. She wanted to care, but maybe in the morning. “73 Questions with Lupita Nyong’o” seemed like too many questions. “Pig slides on frozen sidewalk” was cute as fuck, but only 11 seconds long. 

But then she found _him_.

“You need a teacher.” 

The deep, silky voice seemed more likely to be teaching how to relax your gag reflex than narrate—according to the title—a series of calligraphy tutorials. A generic, instrumental song played over a massive hand delicately writing _Kylligraphy_ in white ink on black paper. 

“Hey everyone! It’s Kylo,” the voice continued. “Welcome back to my channel. In today’s video, I’m going to show you how to use two different types of masking fluid to create negative space art.”

She had no idea what he meant, but _boy_, was she ready to learn. Did this count as ASMR? She's never experienced the tingles before, but maybe there’s a first time for everything? The face accompanying the voice wasn’t bad, either. Everything about him was big: his hands, his nose, his lips, hisears that his dark hair failed to hide. Unfortunately, he wasn’t on screen for long. The camera shifted to show an overhead view of his workspace. She clicked through the roulette site to his channel and subscribed—then let his voice lull her to sleep. The last thing she remembered before drifting off was his instruction to get the brush nice and wet. 

By the time she woke up, Youtube’s autoplay feature had ended up on a video called, “Started from the Bottom: Benjamin Franklin and Drake Compared.” While the Green Brothers were fine, they didn’t compare to Kylo. Still, it was the best night’s sleep she’d had in a while. 

Rose was already up and eating breakfast when Rey left her room with a smile on her face. “You don’t have a man hiding in there, do you?” her roommate asked, with a raised eyebrow. 

Rey replied while making a cup of tea, “Ha! I wish! Why?”

“I thought I heard a man’s voice from your room last night when I got up for a glass of water and now you seem suspiciously not grumpy...”

“Just Youtube. But I do think I found the cure to my insomnia!”

Over the next several months, Rey became one of _Kylligraphy_’s top subscribers. She didn’t learn much about calligraphy, but the bags under her eyes disappeared and her productivity increased. Besides working full-time repairing items at the pawn shop, Rose and her started releasing three videos a week on their youtube channel instead of one. _Wenches with Wrenches_—Rose's idea—had even been invited to speak on a panel at an upcoming convention.

An upcoming convention where Kylo would be hosting a workshop.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey gets a chance to meet Kylo in person at the YouTube convention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to my two betas, [here4thereylo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/here4thereylo/pseuds/here4thereylo) and [sunshineflying](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineflying/pseuds/sunshineflying) (who also made my moodboard)!

He was even more beautiful in person, if that was possible. His voice was commanding and strong as he guided the attendees through his demonstration. Rey fiddled with the pen he’d given them to follow along, but didn’t actually write anything. Instead, she kept switching the ink cartridge from black to red then back to black. Taking things apart and putting them back together were more her speed.

Too soon his workshop was over and everyone stood to file out. Before she could slip away to her own panel, he approached her table, leaning against the edge. “Rey, right?”

Her jaw dropped. _How does he know my name?_ She quickly collected herself and stuck out a hand for him to shake. “That’s right, and you’re Kylo of course.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I’ve been wondering which_ Wench with a Wrench_ followed me,” he answered her unasked question with a smirk, motioning for her to lead the way out of the room. “Let me walk you to your next panel. I’d love to see your progress.”

“Thank you! My progress?"

"The calligraphy." He gestured to the (still blank) sheet of paper covered in little dots he had given them for practice. "When channels follow me, it’s usually for one of two reasons: follow-for-follow or collaboration. When you didn't seem after either, I assumed you were actually interested in the craft. Was I wrong?"

“Oh that,” she laughed nervously. This was going to be embarrassing. She peered up at him sheepishly though her eyelashes. “Have you ever heard of ASMR?”

“Uh...yeah, I guess?” The hand he used to rub the back of his neck looked even larger in person. 

“Well, the thing is, I’ve always had insomnia, right? Since I was a kid. And your voice is very calming? So I listen more than, you know, watch. Do you want this back?”

She didn’t expect his full belly laugh upon seeing the unblemished practice paper, but she wouldn’t mind hearing it again. “Oh man, my dad is going to have a field day with this!” He motioned to the older gentlemen standing first in line for her panel. “I suppose this explains why my watch time increased during the middle of the night!”

As she face palmed because _of course his watch time would have gone up then why didn’t she think of that! Did he think he had a very religious follower in New Zealand or something_ his father noticed their approach. 

“Ben! Over here!” It was cute how his dad practically jumped up and down to get his attention, waving him over. 

Cute, however, is not how Rey would describe Kylo—Ben?—leaning down to whisper in her ear as they got within earshot. “I apologize for him in advance, he’s sort of your biggest fan,” he said, before standing back up to his full height and introducing them. “Dad, this is Rey. Rey, Han Solo.”

She looked from Han to Ben and back. “_The_ Han Solo?”

“The Air Force General, yes,” Kylo responded with an eye roll.

“No, the smuggler!” Rey reached out to to shake Han’s hand. “You made the Kessel Run in 14 minutes!”

“12!” Han pulls her in for a loose hug, mouthing to Kylo over his shoulder with a raised brow, “I thought you didn’t know her?”

“We just met,” Kylo mouthed back, then added aloud, “I’m sure Rey would love to hear all about it but she’s going to be late for her panel.”

Han stepped back to let her go, albeit reluctantly. “Yes, yes, of course. Ben, invite the girl to lunch.”

Running a hand through his hair, Ben—Kylo?—sighed, but invited both Rey and Rose to lunch if they were free after. She said she’d love to, perhaps a bit preemptively since she couldn’t remember if they were free or not. But, she wasn’t going to give up the opportunity to hear more of his voice in person. 

Rose and the other panelists Kaydel, Bazine, and Phasma were already seated when she walked in. Han and _Kylen_ followed her in, and were followed in turn by the rest of those waiting in line. Taking her seat next to Rose, Rey motioned for her friend to lean back so they could talk without it being picked up by the microphones. “I hope we don’t have any plans after this.”

“Why?” Rose was the very image of the unamused emoji. 

“I may have already said we’d have lunch with Kylo Ren and his dad _Han Solo_,” Rey explained, pointing to the two of them sitting on the end of the first row.

“Ooh, get it girl!” 

Before Rey could respond that _it wasn’t like that_—at least not yet—Phasma cleared her throat and started introducing the panel. “Welcome to Male Dominance and Sexism on Youtube, I’m Phasma from Spark Joy…”

The first half was spent on some predetermined talking points. Bazine—from Netal Gear Solid—represented the gamer girl population while Kaydel—Connix Cosmetics—was the voice of makeup connoisseurs. Phasma opened the floor to questions from the audience for the second half of their time period. 

“This question is for Rey,” Han started with a smirk, ”Would you ever do this as a full-time job if you could afford it? If you were to marry my son he has a rather large trust fund thanks to his mother...”

She heard _Benlo_ groan next to his father, running his hand over his face then up through his hair again. 

“Thanks, dude, for that lovely example of the type of comments we have to deal with daily.” Rose’s answer was met with laughter and applause from the rest of the convention goers. 

The rest of the panel went by smoothly, with no more loaded questions from Han. When it was over _Ben Ren_ approached the table, a contrite look on his face. “Even though I already apologized in advance, let me do so again. I am so sorry. If you don’t want to have lunch, I completely understand.” He shot his dad a pointed look, which was met with rolling eyes. 

Rey looked sideways at Rose, subtly asking if it was still okay. She didn’t want to miss spending more time with him while she could.

Her roommate winked back before addressing… well she was going to address _him_ but before she could Rey blurted out, “Do you prefer Ben or Kylo?”

He moved his mouth around in the way she knows means he’s contemplating something. “I normally go by Kylo at things like this to keep work separate from my personal life. But given the circumstances, you can call me Ben.” He nodded once, as if to confirm to himself he made the right decision. 

Rose wiggled her eyebrows, suggesting at what the circumstances making her part of his personal rather than work life may be. “In that case we’ll go to lunch, but you’re paying Mr. Rather-Large-Trust-Fund. Reyrey never turns down a free meal.”

Inside the hotel hosting the convention were a gift shop, a steakhouse requiring a reservation, and a few tents in the atrium serving franchised out barely warm pizza. But just outside was a veritable cornucopia of food trucks. That’s where they headed. 

“All right, what does everyone want?” Ben asked, looking around at the selection and back to the other three. 

Han wanted a burger, Rose wanted Banh Mi Tacos, and Rey wanted...

“Everything.”

Ben opened and closed his mouth a few times. “Is that, I mean, are you serious?”

Rose snickered, then headed toward the Vietnamese fusion truck. It was furthest from the picnic tables, so they could work their way back around. “Better get out your wallet, rich boy.”

“I was only half serious.” Rey looked at Ben sideways as they made their way behind Rose and Han. “You don’t have to actually get me everything. Or I can pay for myself.”

He stuck his huge (Trump could only DREAM) hands in his pockets. “Don’t worry about it.” When she seemed skeptical he elaborated, “It’s actually kinda nice being around a girl who’s not afraid to really eat.” 

“Well in that case, I’d like a phorrito, please.”

Next was a soul food truck where Rey got chicken and waffles, then an American grill for burgers. Han and Rose went to secure the group a picnic table while the other two took the long way. 

While waiting in line to get a gyro (Ben) and falafels (Rey), she spoke up. “Thank you for this. Food is a sore subject for me. That you hardly hesitated means a lot.”

“Of course. I know we just met—in person anyway—but if you want to talk about it, I’m here.”

How was he so sweet? This was going better than she had ever dreamed. When she saw he was hosting a workshop at the same convention they were speaking at, Rey only hoped for a good look at him from the back of a room and hearing his voice without a microphone and speakers to distort it. And now here he was buying upwards of $75 worth of food for the four of them. Okay mostly for her. But that was largely to make up for what his dad said in their panel. And probably because Rose would beat him up if he didn’t. Still, it made him seem genuine about the offer. Like maybe she _could_ talk to him about it. If she could keep from crying.

“That means a lot, thank you,” she said to her feet. “The short of it is that I grew up in an orphanage in Jakku…” She kicked a pebble, thinking _please don’t pity me please don’t pity me_.

After a few seconds of her refusing to look at him, he gently pushed her chin up with one (giant, this cannot be overstated) finger. “You’re stronger than you know.”

Her breath caught. Who is this man? A single tear spilled down her cheek, but she hastily wiped it away and cleared her throat. There wasn’t time to respond, and what would she say to that if there were? It was their turn in line.

Rose gave her a _look_ when they sat down. Chances are she saw them in line for Greece Lightning and Rey would have to explain it later. But if Han saw, he kept it to himself which was unexpected but a relief. 

What Han _did_ bring up was their two channels collaborating on a video. Apparently he had been trying to get Ben to send them a message about it for months, especially after Ben let slip one of them had followed him. But what could the two channels possibly collaborate on? 

His suggestion was maybe the _Wenches_ could build Ben a fancy pen. Ben scoffed and explained that his “fancy pens” were not mechanical, so that was out unless Rose and Rey were secret woodworkers and metalsmiths respectively. The next suggestion was for Ben to go on their channel and restore Han’s Ford Falcon (“And that would help promote my channel how? That’s not how collabs work!”) It was fun to watch father and son’s light hearted bickering, and it was clear this was a conversation they’d had before. But by the time they threw away their trash and re-entered the hotel to go their separate ways, they were no closer to a viable topic. 

Rey didn’t see him again during the rest of the convention, but they swapped phone numbers just in case.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the pen Ben gave the particpants in his workshop! [Pilot Parallel Pen 2-Color Calligraphy Pen Set](https://www.amazon.com/Pilot-Parallel-Calligraphy-Cartridges-90053/dp/B002RJPPMK/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=pilot%2Bparallel%2Bpen%2Bred%2Band%2Bblack&qid=1569882955&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011&rnid=2470954011&rps=1&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1)
> 
> I don't actually know if woodworkers and metalsmiths are who would make dip style calligraphy pens and google wasn't much help so just go with it.
> 
> Come say hi at [one of these places!](http://jaliyahjade.contactin.bio)

**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi at [one of these places!](http://jaliyahjade.contactin.bio)


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